Peace, Propaganda, and the Promised Land: US Media and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

(560 mins) Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land provides a striking comparison of U.S. and international media coverage of the crisis in the Middle East, zeroing in on how structural distortions in U.S. coverage have reinforced false perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This pivotal documentary exposes how the foreign policy interests of American political elites--oil, and a need to have a secure military base in the region, among others--work in combination with Israeli public relations strategies to exercise influence over how news from the region is reported. Through the voices of scholars, media critics, peace activists, religious figures, and Middle East experts, Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land carefully analyzes and explains how--through the use of language, framing and context--the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza remains hidden in the news media. At its core, the documentary raises questions about the ethics and role of journalism, and the relationship between media and politics. Interviewees include Seth Ackerman, IDF Major Stav Adivi, Rabbi Arik Ascherman, Hanan Ashrawi, Robert Fisk, Neve Gordon, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Karen Pfeifer, Alisa Solomon, and Gila Svirsky.

(Note: This documentary is a well-done, but highly partisan look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. If used in the classroom, you may want to supplement it with other videos or materials for balance)